Meet the 2021 Lexus Design Award Winner
The Lexus Design Award 2021 Grand Prix is a celebration of engineering, philanthropic problem solving, and creativity. This year, the automaker received 2,079 entries from 66 countries around the world, but there could only be one winner. That honor went to Henry Glogau, who cooked up the concept for the “Portable Solar Distiller,” a device that uses clean energy to purify water.
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About the winning entry
Participants were tasked with designing inventions that fit the theme “Design for a Better Tomorrow,” and encompass the three core principles of Lexus: Anticipate, Innovate, and Captivate. And among over 2,000 candidates and six finalists, a panel of elite judges chose Henry Glogau’s creation to be the winner of the Lexus Design Award 2021 Grand Prix.
His Portable Solar Distiller aims to solve a problem that plagues billions of people around the world — access to potable water. Using the power of the sun, this invention can make seawater or polluted water into safe, clean, and healthy distilled water. It may not be the most high-tech proposal that Lexus has ever awarded, but that’s part of its strength — its simple design makes it accessible to the regions that need it most. And on top of its water-purifying capabilities, the Portable Solar Distiller also provides a shady place for people to rest.
Glogau stated that he was honored to win the top prize, and thanked both Lexus and the panel of judges. “When you look at the level and quality of the finalists and their projects and the progress that has been made throughout, any one of us could have been the winner this year,” the New Zealand-born architect said in a press release. “I’d also like to thank the Mentors – their expertise in a variety of fields really strengthened not only our designs but us also as designers. We as finalists will cherish the thought-provoking questions and conversations we had, and we were so fortunate to experience them.” He further thanked Lexus for providing resources and a platform for up-and-coming designers.
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If you’d like to see what innovations Lexus is currently cooking up, check out our coverage of the Lexus LF-Z Electrified concept car.
Kimiko Kidd is a native Daytonian. She graduated from Wright State University with degrees in environmental science and sociology. She loves her trusty old Honda Civic, but dreams of owning a 1974 Ford Falcon XB with a custom paint job and a vintage Kawasaki Z1000. In her free time, Kimiko can be found watercolor-painting, baking muffins, collecting rocks, playing old-school Nintendo games, writing her novel, sewing stuffed animals, and cosplaying as her favorite Mad Max characters. See more articles by Kimiko.